This invention relates to a device or assembly for the treating of blood vessels and more specifically to a device or assembly for performing a remote endarterectomy or dilatation and to an endarterectomy method using the device.
It is known that narrowing or blockages (thromboses) can occur in blood vessels, particularly in older people. This is often caused by the effects of deposits on the inside walls of the blood vessels leading to hardening or calcifying of the blood vessels. This has dangerous consequences for the health, because the quantity of blood now able to flow through the blood vessel is drastically reduced. In order for effective blood circulation to occur, and to avoid possible limb amputation for example, any blockage or obstacle in the blood vessels must be removed.
One conventional method for treating hardening of the blood vessels involves a complicated operation. In the case of the artery between the groin and knee, this is quite a severe operation. The patient is cut open at the groin and the knee, whereafter the artery is completely removed and replaced by an artificial artery. This can be especially hard on and dangerous for older people, particularly because of the duration of the operation. The operation is also expensive and requires a lengthy hospital recovery period for the patient. Additionally, there is a danger of rejection of the artificial blood vessel by the body, which can lead to further post operation complications.
Another procedure for treating totally or partially blocked blood vessels, called endarterectomy, separates the inner layer of the blood vessel, the so called tunica-intima or intimal lining or intima, from the blood vessel wall using a ring stripper. The intimal lining, which has been separated from the vessel wall over the length of the blockage, is then removed from the patient along with the blockage. A new intimal lining then grows back to replace the removed intimal lining. See, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,944,552 and 4,621,636.
Conventional endarterectomy procedures are typically carried out using two incisions, one on either side of the blockage. The first incision permits access to the vessel by the instrument; the second incision permits access to the distal end of the separated intima so the separated intima may be severed from the vessel wall and then removed through the first incision.